Block Fortress 2 Review: A Nostalgic Sequel Undercut by Its Own RNG

Block Fortress 2, the first PC entry from mobile studio Foursaken Media's long-running Block Fortress series, sits at 81% positive across 264 Steam reviews. A detailed sample of 20 English-language reviews, spanning launch week through more than a year later, reveals a review base largely made up of longtime fans of the original mobile games -- and those same fans are remarkably consistent about exactly where the sequel falls short.

A Genuine Nostalgia Payoff

Reviewers who grew up with the mobile originals describe specific, tangible moments of recognition rather than vague fondness. One writes that "as soon as I placed the power generator, I got huge ass chills down my spine," calling it "such a recognizable sound for anyone who grew up with the game." Another, reflecting on the original's technical achievement on an original iPad, calls it "the perfect mix of Minecraft-style building, tower defense, PvE, and sandbox gameplay all in one," and says the sequel reusing "a lot of the old sound effects and textures, just with a modern touch... hits super super hard if you played the original." A third simply calls it "my childhood but better and now on PC." This isn't generic five-star enthusiasm -- it's detailed, specific recognition from players who clearly know the source material well, which lends real weight to their praise.

The RNG Upgrade System: The Sample's Clearest, Most Specific Complaint

If there's one issue nearly every critical review converges on, it's the sequel's new upgrade system. One lengthy, detailed review lays out the core objection: in the original games, "almost every piece of equipment, and almost every block, was permanently upgradeable... You saved up for them and knew exactly what you were getting." In Block Fortress 2, by contrast, "you throw in the slot machine and get a certain type of upgrade... it will be random what troop it buffs, what kind of buff it is, and the rarity of the buff," which the reviewer calls "a remnant of their block fortress empires mobile game with lootboxes" that "has no place in pc gaming." A separate, otherwise very positive and nostalgic reviewer independently raises the identical concern: "the only thing I do not like about this game are the global mods... unlike the previous game where you get the materials to buy them where the grind is worth and certain... it feels like a timesink in the sense you do not know what you are get." That's two reviewers, one broadly negative and one broadly positive, reaching the same specific structural criticism independently -- a strong signal this is a real design regression rather than a matter of taste.

The "Tower Cheese" Meta

A second, closely related complaint recurs across multiple reviews: a small number of building strategies dominate to the point of making most others pointless. One reviewer describes it directly: "simply build a tall tower on your bunker and slap lasers and snipers on it, built it out like a giant mushroom, end game content." Another, writing many months later, confirms the issue persists: "even with them removing the range bonus from your meta towers, they're still meta towers when you just use high range turrets on them (such as lasers having true infinite range now)." A third reviewer frames the underlying cause as a range and economy imbalance: "all but a few turrets have pathetic ranges, by the time they start shooting they will probably be killed... This means the ideal (and maybe only) strategy is build a giant tower with laser turrets which wins easily making every other turret feel pointless." Three independent reviewers, across a span of many months, describing the same dominant strategy is a clear sign this hasn't been meaningfully addressed since launch.

Troops: An Underdeveloped System

The friendly-troop mechanic, carried over in modified form from the mobile spinoff Block Fortress: War, draws consistent disappointment. One reviewer notes "there is a troop system, but half of them are super underpowered... you also can't command them in any [way], so they will likely stand in front of an enemy and just die." Another, in a launch-week review, describes them as feeling "more like roadblocks designed to occupy the enemy for a few more seconds... rather than anything fun and powerful and worth building around." A recent review simply pleads: "wanna suggest that can you update that we can command the troops pls" -- suggesting this remains unaddressed well after launch.

Post-Launch Support: A Mixed Picture

Reviewers disagree somewhat on how well-supported the game has been. One four-months-later review complains "the pace of updates is painfully slow though, the game hasn't gotten a single content update since I got it." But a more recent review specifically praises a co-op update: "great game made even better with new Co-op," and another adds "the recent coop update has been a blast to play with my friend who also played the og." Taken together, this suggests a genuinely slow early patch cadence that has since picked up with at least one significant feature addition, rather than an abandoned project.

Value and Content

Compared to its mobile predecessor, most reviewers agree the sequel offers substantially more content. One detailed review notes that "all the civilisations from BF:W have been added as enemies you can face," with battles that mix multiple enemy factions requiring players "to adapt your tactics." Several reviewers explicitly frame the roughly NZ$29 price as reasonable given the added scope, even while flagging the same balance issues noted above -- this reads as a game whose fundamentals and content offering are sound, even where its newer systems aren't yet fully dialled in.

Final Verdict

Block Fortress 2 succeeds at what its built-in audience most wanted: a faithful, expanded, PC-native continuation of a well-loved mobile series, with real content growth and a well-received co-op mode. But the same detailed, engaged fans carrying that praise are just as consistent about where the sequel falls short -- an RNG upgrade system that undercuts the series' traditionally deterministic progression, and a dominant tower-building strategy that flattens build variety. Neither issue has fully resolved as of the most recent reviews in the sample, making this an easier recommendation for nostalgic series fans than for newcomers looking for a tightly balanced tower defense game.